


Holiday Business

by pet



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-10
Updated: 2018-12-10
Packaged: 2019-09-15 22:20:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,274
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16941771
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pet/pseuds/pet
Summary: Hermione Granger laments a Christmastime business trip without her family until she's surprised with a special visitor.





	Holiday Business

She sat alone at the hotel bar, sipping a drink and watching the Muggle TV behind the barkeep. She was oddly mesmerized by the men on the ice, skating back and forth, chasing some small ball she couldn’t see but was constantly assured by the broadcasters that it was there. It occurred to her that the men had to be heavily padded because no one could take that much brutality and still be able to walk, let alone skate. She sipped her drink and pondered the intensity with which her fellow patrons watched the sport, jumping a bit when a guy with a giant blue leaf on his shirt shot the ball (or was it called a puck?) into the net behind the even more heavily padded guy with the giant red C on the first of his shirt. The bar erupted in cheers.

“HA! Habs SUCK!!!” shouted one bar patron.

A man sloshed his beer on the bar as he reached over to high five the first guy. “Yeah! Go Leafs!!!” 

Pulling her drink closer in an effort to keep it safe, she turned her back on the more raucous fellows and returned her attention to the screen. Perhaps if she paid a bit more attention to the commentary, she could figure out the animosity between the “Habs” and the “Leafs”.

+++++++++

He saw her the moment he walked into the bar. She sat with her back to him, but he knew she would be gorgeous. How could she not be, wearing those red robes like a second skin, her bushy brown hair pulled off to one side, and those perfect legs that seemed to go on forever? He smiled to himself and took the first step toward her, convinced he would buy her a drink and talk her up. If he was lucky, maybe he could even convince her to go back to his room with him…

A red-haired man wearing an oversized blue and white shirt with the number 13 emblazoned on the back sidled up next to her. He watched in amusement as the man seemed to whisper something to her that made her posture stiffen. Almost as if it was against his own will, the man apologized and turned away from the woman. The red-haired man was gone almost as soon as he arrived.

++++++++++

Bad breath was a total deal breaker for her. Maybe it was because her parents were dentists, but she couldn’t abide people who didn’t take the time to at least brush, floss, and rinse. She knew that at this hour of the evening most people hadn’t brushed in a while, but there was a distinct difference between “I haven’t brushed in a few hours and I’ve been eating/drinking” and “My mouth is just gross”. The ginger man she’d just chased off definitely fell into the latter category.

She missed home. She hated leaving London, hated leaving her young children, hated leaving her husband. Many of the people she’d spotted at the conference were fortunate enough to be attending with their spouses. The man who’d just verbally accosted her threw into stark relief the fact that she was alone in a foreign city. Had her husband been there, the halitosis-infested hockey hooligan never would have pestered her. But she was by herself. Her husband was Head Auror and that meant staying home for the holidays and not travelling abroad with his wife.

Pulling her drink to her, Hermione Granger wrapped her fingers around the glass and looked at the clock. It was just gone 9pm and she had really been hoping to be up in her room by now, enjoying the peace and quiet. Instead, she was sat at the bar, drinking her third spiced apple cider, and watching a hockey game involving teams she now knew to be the Montreal Canadians and the Toronto Maple Leafs. Since she was in Toronto, it was no coincidence that the vast majority of her fellow patrons were supporting the local team. What did surprise her was the number of witches and wizards in the place who were also cheering loudly. No doubt alcohol was involved.

Hermione wanted a drink as well, but she couldn’t. She’d received a Floo call from the Minister himself stating that he was sending an important delegate to the conference she was attending. He’d instructed her to wait for this man in the hotel bar and then join him for a spot of dinner in order to bring him up to speed on the proceedings he’d missed that day. The call had come in at 6:30 pm local time and she’d immediately redressed for dinner and head to the bar. Now she was ready to Floo Kingsley, regardless of the late hour back home, and tell him exactly what she thought of being made to wait. Finishing her cider, she placed a couple toonies on the bar and turned to leave.

++++++++++

She was leaving. He had to act now but he was frozen to the spot. She looked even more beautiful than he remembered, and he made a mental note to be sure to tell her so. First, though, he needed to get her attention. The man walked up behind her and whispered in her left ear while grabbing her bum.

“Hey, gorgeous. Let me buy you a drink.”

He ran into her back when she stopped suddenly. Throwing his hands out to brace her as she spun around, he simply smiled and awaited her realization.

“Who the –“ she began angrily. “Harry???” Hermione threw herself into his arms and squeezed the air from his lungs. “What are you doing here?”

“Oh you know… The Minister called and I answered.” Harry laughed while Hermione smacked him lightly on the arm. “Oh, alright. Kingsley did call, but he said he felt horrible that everyone else he was sending here was using it as a romantic getaway, but you had to go alone. He arranged everything. Paid time off, work coverage for both of us, and a suite with a view of the tree in Nathan Phillips Square.”

Hermione was tearing up. “Who has the kids?”

“Molly and Arthur. A couple of days with the surrogate grandparents will do them some good. …and it will do us a LOT of good!”

She was overcome with happiness and was just about to kiss him when a thought niggled at the back of her mind. “What did you mean when you said coverage for both of us?”

He smiled. “Where are the notes I know you took today?” She pulled the rolls of parchment from her ever-present beaded bag and showed him. “Perfect. I’ll just take these…”

Harry took the papers, along with her hand, and led her from the bar. Stopping at the front desk, Harry left the rolls with a note as to whom was supposed to get them. Once assured they’d be properly delivered, he pulled her toward the lifts.

“So, what do you say, gorgeous: want to go back to my room and do that thing we can’t do at home?”

The couple smiled slyly at each other and climbed into the lift. They kissed passionately for most of the ride to their floor and giggled like children down the hall to their new, shared room. Opening the door, Harry pulled Hermione inside and helped her out of her clothes. Once she was in nothing but a camisole and knickers, he undressed down to his boxers. Then they climbed into bed together, turned off the lights, and did that thing that parents enjoy most when their kids are away for the night…

They slept.

**Author's Note:**

> Yes, I realize that the story takes place at night and the time difference would make it exceedingly late (or early?) for Harry when he arrives, but we all know that those who protect us often keep different hours.
> 
> Thank you for reading and Happy Holidays!


End file.
